My Apology to You
by CaptChiChi
Summary: She's been searching for answers all her life, but she soon realises that she's not the only one with a shady past.
1. Chapter 1

**MY APOLOGY TO YOU **

* * *

Chapter One:

_There existed three beings before the creation of the Island. The twins – one boy, one girl – wished to have the power of creation and time. Their brother, the eldest demanded the ultimate power. All three wishes were granted. And of these three, only he, the eldest, abused his power. Frightened of their brother's newfound abilities, the twins sought Light and overthrew their brother. They loved him so much that they could not bear to kill him. Instead they banished his soul to the New World where he would live again. And thus Destiny Island was born._

"Riku! Sora!" she called out. Every morning of everyday she set sail to the Island. She always gave the same greeting: a warm smile and a comforting "hello". Ever since her arrival, nobody could ever get over her enchanting aura. It was infectious.

The three of them had grown up together. Riku and Sora had been best friends since before time. But when she mysteriously appeared, they both found something in that they cherished and protected – even from each other. What was once a formidable duo became a trio of inseparable friends.

Riku was the first to answer her call. He always was. Riku and Sora were always the frist to set food on the island – mainly because Sora desperately wanted to beat Riku in anything and everything that they did. Unfortunately for Sora, Riku was always victorious.

"What brings you to the Island so early?" he asked coolly. "You're not much of an early bird."

"Have you ever thought about how I came to this Island?"

Her abruptness caught him off guard.

"No".

"I have, and it puzzles me. I can't remember anything since before I arrived."

"Well they did conclude that you had amnesia."

Riku would have liked to have continued to pry just what she had meant by such a question if Sora had not run over – panting as though he had run a marathon.

"You'll never guess what I found!"

She and Rikku blankly stared at him.

He rummaged through his pockets and brought it out, "I found something similar to your lock pendant!"

She fingered her own pendant set on pretty silver chain. They looked alike indeed. Both were engraved with the same insignia: a heart.

×♥×

(She found it)

(I know she did)

(But why?)

(Because I drew it there)

(You can't meddle with her feelings you know)

(I'm not. She needs to learn the truth)

(The truth about what?)

(The power that sleeps inside her. And until she discovers it, I will continue to be what I am)

(You are what you are. You cannot change that. You know that already)

(That's why I drew it there. Her locket, my locket: they're one in the same)

(And what of the two?)

(They will have to choose)

(I don't follow)

(They will have to choose between their friendship and her. That's why I drew it there. The key will solve everything)

(But it will also be our doom)

×♥×

She did not tell them her plans until she was certain it was right. This was her journey, her story. Only she could see it through. She could only imagine their reaction. Riku would insist that he would let her come. He could not stand to see her hurt by anybody, or anything. On the other hand, Sora would make it an adventure – she wasn't the only one who desired freedom. She let her mind wander.

"What's wrong?"

She glanced up at Sora, who affectionately held a large star fruit.

"Ever since I gave you that pendant you've been out of sorts."

She did not answer, but nevertheless he continued.

"Selphie told me that if two people share the same star fruit, their lives will be forever connected."

They sat by the wharf and didn't say a word. Sora handed her his pocket knife and she cut the fruit. But to Sora's surprise, she cut it into three – rather than two – pieces.

She took her piece and exhaled. Taking one last glance at her friend, she finally breaking the silence, "Don't ever change Sora", and left.

Sora stared at the remaining pieces of fruit. One part was bigger than the other. But which part belonged to whom?


	2. Chapter 2

**MY APOLOGY TO YOU **

* * *

Chapter Two: 

Rikku was the oldest of the trio, and therefore naturally proud of the power that he subconsciously had over everybody else. Everybody looked up to him; Tidus, Wakka and Selphie were all but a few of his solid fan base. And to some extent, even _she_ looked up to him.

But somehow he was beginning to feel things that were forein to him. Jealously and hatred were feelings that he had never had the chance to feel. Yet one way or another these feelings were his constant companions.

From where he sat, he could see everything. Tidus and Wakka were on the outskirts of the beach, blitzing as Selphie watched on. Every now and then Tidus and Wakka would argue over something and then Selphie would step in with her skipping rope and break them up. The cycle continued until Wakka threw the ball at Selphie, knocking her over. For a split second, she lay there stunned, but then burst into tears.

"HEY!"

Riku rushed over, helping the little girl to her feet. The sudden exclamation caught the attention of Sora, and soon he joined in the fray.

"Sora, take Selphie to the Tree House."

Sora obeyed without question. Riku could handle this way better than he could.

×♥×

Sora and Selphie sat together for a long time. Along the way he had fetched a coconut, which he cracked open for her to drink. Selphie had come to him the day before about how Tidus and Wakka and become more and more aggressive. She had stumbled upon a star fruit while playing with Tidus, and had wanted to share it with him. But Wakka had seen them and got angry. He was a superstitious boy and believe that you should only share a star fruit with the person you care about the most. When watching them argue over who would share it with her became too much for her, she had abandoned her friends – taking the star fruit with her. It was then that she gave Sora the star fruit.

"Did she like the star fruit?" Selphie asked tentatively.

"I don't know. She cut it into three pieces."

"Let me guess: a piece for her, a piece for you and a piece for Riku? Did your piece taste nice?"

"No. I didn't know which piece was mine. She cut it into unequal pieces."

"Oh".

×♥×

As soon as they were out of sight, he beckoned towards the delinquents.

"Which one of you likes Selphie more than the other?"

His question confused them as they replied with a blank stare. Unfazed, Riku repeated his question. This time the boys answered immediately: "ME!"

"I thought so"

"So who, out of you two, does Selphie like?"

They did not hesitate. "ME!"

"I figured that might be the case."

He turned to leave, but Tidus wasn't satisfied.

"So Riku, who does Selphie like more? Me or Wakka?"

Wakka grunted. He was so sure that Riku would not answer. The look on his face suggested so.

"Well that all depends."

"On what?" said Tidus impatiently. The ambiguity was killing him.

"On who gets the larger piece of the star fruit."

×♥×

All around her the darkness engulfed her. But even still, she knew she was not alone.

"Who are you?" she called out.

(You already know who I am)

"What are you then?"

(I am the part of you that no longer exists)

"But how can that be? Doesn't that mean you're not real?"

(I am as real as you, for I am you. Or at least, a part of you)

"Who are you?"

Her words resonated in the darkness and then somehow she began to glow with light. Whoever she was talking to offered her hand from the darkness. Unsure of what else to do, she took the hand. It was surprisingly warm. Light seemed to shift between them, and at last she had a good look at the girl who had haunted her dreams.

They looked nothing alike, expect for the pale complexion and blue eyes.

(I am Naminé)

And once again, they were swallowed by the darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

**MY APOLOGY TO YOU**

* * *

Chapter Three: 

Riku and Sora had followed her all day, obeying her every order. She had given them a list of what to get her to add to her treasure box: a bottle of fresh water, two coconuts, three mushrooms and a seagull egg. She no longer smiled and rumour had it that she was constantly having nightmares. It wasn't like her to act this way: usually she was open about what had bothered her. Riku blamed Sora. It was him who had given her the star pendant that haunted her.

"Have you gotten everything that I asked for?" she asked.

Sora refused to answer. He and Riku had raced each other to see who could find all the items first. Riku had won effortlessly.

"Yeah we have," said Riku, handing over the collected items.

"Good. I want you two to have these."

She handed them a star fruit each – an engraving of their names were carved on the side.

"Tidus and Wakka told me to give you these to thank you for your help."

Sora frowned. "Those boys upset Selphie pretty bad. But I had nothing to do with helping them out. It was all this guy's doing." He pointed to Riku.

"What did they say to you?" asked Riku.

"Something about sharing the star fruit together."

They left the wharf and climbed up to the Tree House. She stowed away the things Riku had brought her in her treasure box, and turned away from her friends.

"Last night I had a dream – not a nightmare. A dream. It was dark and there was this girl that kept calling out to me. I followed the voice but somehow the closer I got to her, the further way she seemed to be.

"I called out to her, asking her who she was but every time she would answer: "I am the part of you that doesn't exist." And I felt confused. She seemed so familiar, as if I had known her all my life even though I had never seen her before."

Sora laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "She's probably someone from your past."

She turned around now, finally letting her tears show. Riku came closer now but did not offer her any comfort.

"But she said she was a part of me!" she cried. "And I don't know why, but I think she is!"

Riku stared at her.

"Listen to me. Get rid of the key pendant. It's doing something to you. Who knows, it may be helping you find out who you really are, and then again it might not. We know that playing around with magic is dangerous."

"Rikku! Don't you understand? This girl _knew_ my name and _nobody_ knows my name!"

"Then what do you plan on doing?" he asked, but he already knew the answer.

"I'm leaving. I want to know who I really am."

×♥×

(Why did you tell her your name?)

(She asked me to)

(And I guess the same reason goes for why you told her what her name is?)

(To know one's name means to have power over them)

(I hope you know what you're doing)

(I do Roxas)

×♥×

It didn't take very long for everybody to know about her sudden decision to leave the Island. They had never heard of such a thing, and to be witnesses to something like it was a revelation. Tidus, Wakka and Selphie were keen on making her last days memorable, so much that they decided to organise a farewell party. Neither Sora nor Riku lifted a finger to help them. Selphie, who decided to take charge, was disappointed in the boys: she half expected them to run the whole show. But then again, it would be pretty much impossible for them to work together when they spent so much of their time arguing.

Riku and Sora were always sparring. But this time it was different. This time they had every intention to hurt the other.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT THAT SHE'S GOING!"

Riku lunged at Sora relentlessly, sending him back. Sora spun around and retaliated, but Riku parried the blow.

"What do you mean by my fault? Don't you want her to be happy? Don't you want her to learn more about herself? She needs to do this!"

Sora went in for another blow. He did not miss his mark. Blood trickled down the side of Riku's face.

Sora had a good point. If they let her go she could come back as a new person. But what would happen if returned as a completely different person? What then? Riku, more than anyone else did not want her to change.

Riku flared back, each blow hitting hard than the last – though Sora was not unfamiliar to the sudden outbreak of rage. Whenever they sparred, Sora seemed to have the upper hand, but every single time Riku managed to get back up and strike him down. This time was no different. Sora had lost, but he was not through with what he had to say. He stagnantly rose.

"Just give up Sora," said Riku without so much as a hint of pity. "You and I both know that you want her to stay as badly as I do."

Wiping the blood from his lips, he replied menacingly, "I won't deny that. But the difference between you and me is that I want to see her happy." Sora threw his wooden sword into the sand and limped away. As he turned around he noticed her watching from afar.


	4. Chapter 4

**MY APOLOGY TO YOU**

Chapter Four

She tended to their wounds separately and silently. She tended to Sora's wounds first. He had suffered most of the injuries from their fight: he had bruises down his arm, a few cuts and a broken lip. Sora made it very clear that he despised being in Riku's presence and the mere thought of being stuck so close to him was more than enough to provoke him into fighting once more. The moment she gave him the all clear, Sora left. It was only then that Riku decided to speak.

"Why didn't you stop us?"

She didn't bother to look up as she patched up the cut on Riku's knee.

"If you knew I was there, why did you continue?"

He sighed, "I dunno. Why do you have to go?"

She moved onto the wound on his forehead.

"Because I have to find her. I have to find Naminé."

Despite his wounds, Riku stood up and shook her.

"Do you know what it's like out there? Do you?"

She quietly shook her head.

"Exactly! There are fiends out there that we don't even know about! And they're not going to stop and politely point out that they want to kill you!"

"I-"

"At least take me with you."

"What would Sora say?"

She turned away and looked out of the shack. If she took Riku along Sora would hate them forever. She did not want that. Despite all their differences they respected each other - even if it didn't seem so now.

She had always compared their friendship to a rainbow.Riku was on the inside of the rainbow: blue. Like his colour counterpart his coolness radiated out of his very being and was sometimes known to be a little cold-blooded. He established a reputation of being an introvert, for the way that he liked to keep most of his ideas and opinions to himself. It was no surprise that Sora was on the other side of the spectrum: red. Everything about him was warm and bright. He was definitely the optimist of the trio. However, she was the middle ground – yellow – and was never inclined to a particular side. Until tonight.

Then quite unexpectedly Riku pulled her to him, his arms prevent her escape. She stood frigid, afraid of what would happen next. She had never been this close to him before. It felt extremely uncomfortable.

"Who cares about Sora," he whispered in her ear. There was something in his tone of voice that she did not like.

"Please," she cried. "Rikku, stop."

She squirmed beneath his iron grip. She could hear her heart beating, and when she could feel his hot breath against her neck, it pounded louder than before.

"Do you know how much you mean to me? I spend every day with you and each day I would hope that you would understand what I feel. But you never noticed a thing. And now you want to leave me. What do you expect me to do?"

She was facing him now and she saw just what he meant. It surprised her. All this time she had thought he bore no expression. But being this close to him she realised how very wrong she was. It was in the very depths of his eyes that gave away his true feelings – and in this very moment he wanted her. No matter what.

She did not know what came over her after that. She was caught in the enrapture cast by story that lay in his eyes. She did not struggle. She did not stir. She did not stop him lifting her head towards his own. And when their lips touched, she was lost to another world.

×♥×

And then the nightmares began. At first Sora disregarded them altogether. He had nightmares before. But it was only when he had them night after night did he realise that something was wrong.

Each one followed the nightmare from the night before. On the night it all began he had dreamt that things were back to normal: he and Riku were on speaking terms, and _she_ wasn't going to leave. He reached out to her but then he fell, falling from the sky and into the sea. And then he saw Riku standing he arm outstretched. Sora reached out once again and this time was engulfed by darkness.

But tonight he dreamt of something else. He had dreamt himself inside a white room, and in it was a grand table. He had no sense of time in this dream, but he felt like he had been around in the room for hours. There were no windows and no doors, no way to escape. He wanted out. Desperately. Strangely enough he wished for his old nightmares. At least then he would not be stuck inside his "cage."

(Sora!)

He spun around, but saw no one.

"What do you want from me?" he screamed. "What do you want?"

(I need you to do something for me)

"Why should I trust you?"

He appeared. He looked as though he were the same age as Sora.

(You don't have to. I want you to look deep down inside and be honest with yourself, Sora)

Sora noticed that when he spoke he did not use his mouth.

"Who are you?"

(I'm known as Roxas. Now will you hear me out?)

"Whatever."

(You need to tell her how you really feel. You cannot let Riku win)

"What does Riku have anything to do with how I feel?"

(One way or another you are going to lose her. If not to Riku's intentions then through Naminé's)

"Naminé," said Sora. "You know her?"

(It's not important. Now remember what I have said: listen to your heart)

And then he disappeared, and Sora awoke.

He knew then exactly what he had to do.

Sora had only noticed one boat tied to the wharf, so he'd finally have a chance to talk to her alone. She had talked about the weird dream that had made her want to go. And now the very same dream had inspired Sora to go for something that he had wished he had all along.

When he found her, she lay fast asleep, and for a moment Sora appreciated the peace. She had been a tranquil person to begin with, but the more time she had spent thinking about her journey, the less peaceful she had become. Her plan was to leave before the end of next week – not because she had no time to pack but because she wanted to be emotionally ready for it. In Sora's eyes, she was having second thoughts.

A voice called out his name, breaking his momentary lapse of concentration. She had awoken.

"Good morning," he said cheerfully. "Do you feel like going for a walk?"

"Mmmm." She brushed away the sleep from her eyes. "Just give me a moment to freshen up."

He felt her push him out the door, but what they saw next surprised them both.


	5. Chapter 5

MY APOLOGY TO YOU

* * *

Chapter Five:

It was the first time Naminé had gone to the Island, and considering that she had known of its existence since its creation, her visit was well overdue. She had come for her and no other. Roxas was not at her side, as he normally would, but he would soon come. She knew him too well, and he was not one to sit and watch.

Naminé waited at the wharf, kicking the waves that crashed against the wharf. When she saw Sora running towards the shack, it did not surprise her. But what he wanted to do there, she did not know. She decided to follow him.

"Hello," said Naminé. "Why are you looking for me?"

Naminé was looking Sora, even though the question was directed at her.

"I need to answers: about myself and about my past," she said. 'And more than anything, I want to know my name."

Naminé looked at her sympathetically. "You were born nameless, and for as long as you can remember you have always been so. Your name is Kairi."

"And what about my past?" asked Kairi, feeling braver.

"You have no past. The supposed memories before coming to this Island are non-existent. You were created to be twelve when you arrived here three years ago."

Kairi turned pale. "But-"

"It's because I chose it to be so." Every syllable bitterly cut like a knife despite the serene smile she had on her face. She looked out into the horizon.

(Naminé! Come back home!)

"I think it's time for me to go. Roxas calls."

She began to leave but Sora pulled her back.

"One last question," he said tentatively. "Who is Roxas?"

"He's the Keeper of Time. He knows the Past, the Present and the Future. So whatever he has said to you, you must do quickly."

Naminé's last words echoed as she vanished into thin air.

´´

Their walk lasted for almost an hour, by the end of which they decided to head to the Secret Place. It was a secluded cave that was guarded by the roots of the Ancient Tree.

Resting against one of the roots that decorated the walls of the cave, Kairi asked, "Sora, why were you and Riku fighting?"

"What do _you_ think we were fighting about?"

"I don't know. I only watched the end of the fight."

So Sora told her. It really annoyed him how Riku blamed him for making Kairi want to leave – not that it mattered anymore. Even still, Riku suddenly become more and more protective of her. It was like they were never good friends.

Kairi frowned. "You make it sound as though Riku was out there to pick a fight."

He gave her a side-way look. "Not entirely. See, there are other reasons why he and I have been arguing a lot these days."

She raised a brow.

"Well, I have this theory that Riku likes you." He hesitated. "And – well – I sorta do too."

"You do?" she said, taken aback.

He eyed her solemnly.

"Yeah, I do."

´´

(Naminé)

(You saw him didn't you?)

(Of course I did. You're not allowed to see him. Neither of us can)

(I know, but I want him to remember!)

(And what happens when he remembers his true Self? Will things go back the way they were? It's not as simple as you have thought it through)

(Sooner or later he's bound to know. And when he does he's not going to be happy. I know what I am doing)

(And should he know the true extent of his power?)

(Then it's about time we told them the truth)

(I'll hold you to your words Naminé. He already knows)

´´

Kairi had _that_ feeling again: the same feeling she had when she and Riku kissed for the first time. It made her feel sick and uncomfortable. It just wasn't right. She slid her hand out of Sora's grasp.

"Sora, I can't," she cried.

Sora lashed back angrily, "Don't tell me you like Riku!"

"Oh Sora! You've always known that I've liked him!"

He took his chances again and reached out for her hand.

"And what about me?"

She was crying much harder now. If anyone could understand, it would have had been Sora.

"I don't know! Right now, in this current moment I don't know who I like more. How could I possibly choose between you two?"

A voice broke out of the shadows: a voice they were very familiar with.

"You can't go on forever trying to please us both, so there's no point in lying. You and I both know that you love one of more than the other. You have to choose, _Kairi_."

Sora and Kairi stared at him.

"Riku, how do you know my name?"

He circled around his friends, making his way to the Door. He was amazed they hadn't noticed. They had been here for so long, yet failed to recognise the same heart insignia on both the key and the lock pendants. It was there for all to see, engraved on the Door. He touched the engraving.

"I've known since I found out what I really am."

As if by cue, Naminé and Roxas materialised. All three stood their stunned.

"It's time we open the Door." said Roxas. He took Naminé's hand and beckoned for Riku to do the same. Kairi and Sora watched on as they began to glow. It reminded Kairi of when she first met Naminé. Roxas placed a steady hand against the door and out of instinct Riku did the same. He felt the woody hardness disappear from beneath his fingertips, and watched in amazement at how it shimmered out to an ethereal state. Their glow vanished.

(Follow me)


End file.
